Session Information
09 SES 04 A, Assessment of Competencies and Attitudes in Science Classrooms
Paper Session
Contribution
Results of international student assessments like TIMSS and PISA showed that German students do not reach high scores in inquiry tests (Baumert et al. 1997, 2001). A reason seems to be a lack of cross-linking between the subjects (Prenzel et al. 2007). In order to improve science education in German schools the German Assembly of Ministers of Education (KMK) established national educational standards. The standards for science subjects are divided into: content knowledge, scientific inquiry,communication and evaluation and judgements (KMK 2005). These contain both equal prescriptions for all three natural science subjects (biology, chemistry and physics) as well as subject-specific remarks. For lessons about scientific inquiry an influence by teachers' beliefs about nature of science and scientific inquiry is described (Brickhouse 1990).
According to the national educational standards and based on theories of scientific inquiry (Klahr 2000, Mayer 2007) this study has developed a theoretical structure of scientific inquiry, describing both biological and chemical inquiry. The dimension inquiry methods contains: modelling, experimenting and observing, comparing and arranging. The dimension scientific reasoning consists of three inquiry skills: question and hypothesis, plan and performance and analysis and reflection (Nehring et al. 2011). Combining these two dimensions this theoretical structure of scientific inquiry describes nine epistemological actions which play a key role in scientific inquiry in school for both biology and chemistry. Based on the theoretical structure of scientific inquiry the aims of the study are its operationalization and empirical validation.
The research questions of the “VerE-Study” are:
1) Is it possible to validate the theoretical structure of scientific inquiry using student assessment?
2) Which similarities between biology and chemistry exist concerning students’ skills in scientific inquiry?
3) Which differences between the subjects concerning teachers’ beliefs about subject-specific characteristics, scientific inquiry and nature of science can be found?
Method
Expected Outcomes
References
Baumert, J., Lehmann, R., et al. (1997): TIMSS – Mathematisch-naturwissenschaftlicher Unterricht im internationalen Vergleich. Deskriptive Befunde. Opladen: Leske+Budrich. Baumert, J., Klieme, E., Neubrand, M., Prenzel, M., Schiefele, U., Schneider, W., Tillmann, K.-J. & Weiß, M. (Eds.) (2001): PISA 2000. Basiskompetenzen von Schülerinnen und Schülern im internationalen Vergleich. Opladen: Leske+Buderich. Brickhouse, N. W. (1990): Teachers’ Beliefs About the Nature of Science and Their Relationship to Classroom Practice. Journal of Teacher Education, 41 (3), 53-62. Klahr, D (2000): Exploring Science: The Cognition and Development of Discovery Processes. London: MIT. KMK / Sekretariat der Ständigen Konferenz der Kultusminister der Länder in der Bundesrepublik Deutschland (2005). Beschlüsse der Kultusministerkonferenz Bildungsstandards im Fach Chemie für den Mittleren Schulabschluss. Beschluss vom 16.12.2004. München, Neuwied: Luchterhand. Mayer, J. (2007): Erkenntnisgewinnung als wissenschaftliches Problemlösen. In D. Krüger & Vogt, H. (Eds.), Theorien in der biologiedidaktischen Forschung (pp. 177-186). Heidelberg: Springer. Nehring, A., Nowak, K. H., R. Tiemann & Upmeier zu Belzen, A. (2011). „VerE-Studie“- Vernetzung der Erkenntnisgewinnung zwischen Chemie-und Biologieunterricht. In D. Höttecke (Ed.), Gesellschaft für Didaktik der Chemie und Physik: Naturwissenschaftliche Bildung als Beitrag zur Gestaltung partizipativer Demokratie. Prenzel, M., Artel, C., Baumert, J., Blum, W., Hammann, M., Klieme, E. & Pekrun, R. (Eds.) (2007): PISA 2006: Die Ergebnisse der dritten internationalen Vergleichsstudie. Münster, München: Waxmann.
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